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Safari linked to something called smart search.net

Hi,

I was recently looking for a media player to download and have inadvertantly added a new default search engine that I now cannot remove.


Even though I have changed the Safari preferences to use a homepage of google or apple.com it reverts back to a homepage of smart search.net


I now frequently get additional tabs opening with links to sites - usually Mackeeper and I get various advertisement bars at the top of pages like amazon or eBay.


My preferences are set to block pop ups and I have removed all history and caches that I know about but I assume there is some sort of setting within the OS somewhere that I need help with.


I am running the latest version of Yosemite.


Any help would be great


thanks

iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.7)

Posted on Jan 16, 2015 4:04 AM

Reply
10 replies

Jan 16, 2015 4:05 AM in response to James Harris

Check the links below for options to remove the Adware.



The Easy, safe, effective method:

http://www.adwaremedic.com/index.php



If you are comfortable doing manual file removals use the somewhat more difficult method:

http://support.apple.com/en-us/HT203987



Also read the articles below to be more prepared for the next time there is an issue on your computer.

https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-7471

https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-8071

Jan 16, 2015 10:11 AM in response to James Harris

There is no need to download anything to solve this problem. You may have installed a variant of the "VSearch" ad-injection malware.

Triple-click the line below on this page to select it, then copy the text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C:

/Library/LaunchDaemons

In the Finder, select

Go Go to Folder...

from the menu bar and paste into the box that opens by pressing command-V. You won't see what you pasted because a line break is included. Press return.

A folder named "LaunchDaemons" may open. Look inside it for a file with a name of the form

com.something.daemon.plist

Here something is a variable word, which can be different in each case. It could be "cloud," "dot," "highway," "submarine," "trusteddownloads," or pretty much anything else.

There may also be a file named

com.something.helper.plist

in the same folder.

Leave the LaunchDaemons folder open, and open the following folder in the same way:

/Library/LaunchAgents

In this folder, there may be a file named

com.something.agent.plist

where the word something is exactly the same as before.

If you feel confident that you've identified these three files, back up all data, then drag the three files you found to the Trash. You may be prompted for your administrator login password. Close the windows and restart the computer.

Don't delete the "LaunchAgents" or "LaunchDaemons" folder or anything else inside either one.

The malware is now permanently inactivated, as long as you never reinstall it. You can stop here if you like, or you can remove two remaining components for the sake of completeness.

Open this folder:

/Library/Application Support

If it has a subfolder named just

something

(where something is the same word as before), drag that subfolder to the Trash and close the window.

Don't delete the "Application Support" folder or anything else inside it.

Finally, in this folder:

/System/Library/Frameworks

there may an item named exactly

v.framework

It's actually another folder, though it has a different icon. Drag it to the Trash and close the window.

Don't delete the "Frameworks" folder or anything else inside it.

If you didn't find the files or you're not sure about the identification, post what you found.

If in doubt, or if you have no backups, change nothing at all.

The trouble may have started when you downloaded and ran an application called "MPlayerX." That's the name of a legitimate free movie player, but the name is also used fraudulently to distribute VSearch. If there is an item with that name in the Applications folder, delete it, and if you wish, replace it with the genuine article from mplayerx.org.

This trojan is often found on illegal websites that traffic in pirated content such as movies. If you, or anyone else who uses the computer, visit such sites and follow prompts to install software, you can expect more of the same, and worse, to follow. Never install any software that you downloaded from a bittorrent, or that was downloaded by someone else from an unknown source.

In the Security & Privacy pane of System Preferences, select the General tab. The radio button marked Anywhere should not be selected. If it is, click the lock icon to unlock the settings, then select one of the other buttons. After that, don't ignore a warning that you are about to run or install an application from an unknown developer.

Then, still in System Preferences, open the App Store or Software Update pane and check the box marked

Install system data files and security updates (OS X 10.10 or later)

or

Download updates automatically (OS X 10.9 or earlier)

if it's not already checked.

Apr 2, 2015 8:08 PM in response to Linc Davis

Hi Davis,


Thanks. I hope these steps will work for me also, but before moving further I have a query from your above suggested steps: "If you feel confident that you've identified these three files, back up all data, then drag the three files you found to the Trash. You may be prompted for your administrator login password. Close the windows and restart the compute

What do you mean by 'back up all data' ? Do I need to take backup of all the data on my MAC to some external disk?



Thanks!!!

Safari linked to something called smart search.net

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